My high school friends & I will be in Chicago in June. We are considering staying at The Palmer House Hilton can anyone give me a review on the hotel. We would like to do the architectural boat tour, navy pier, the art institute, see a play and shop, How convenient is the hotel to these things. Thanks for any info you can give me.

It would definitely be a convenient location. Most of the "reviews" I've seen here have been favorable.

We live in the Chicago 'burbs. A couple of years ago parents of one of my daughter's friends rented a couple of rooms there for themselves, their kids and a few friends to stay for a couple of nights for Taste of Chicago and the fireworks. My daughter enjoyed the stay there.

I actually stayed at the Palmer House last year. The location is great, but our room was very small. We had a king size bed and literally could barely walk between the bed and the armoire. I do know they have different sized rooms so I would find out the room type before you book, if you are planning on having more than two people in a room. The quality of the room, however, was great with a verrrry comfy bed.

In terms of location, it is right in the middle of downtown so you should be able to get to everything using public transportation and walking. The art institute, for example, is only a few blocks away. There is also a red line el stop directly in front of the hotel, and the blue line that comes from O'hare is only a block away. Here is a link to the bus and train routes.
http://www.transitchicago.com/maps/maps/2007D.html

Hope this helps and have a good trip!

The PH is a great choice. I've stayed there several times, most recently July 2007 (click on my name and you'll find a trip report.)

I love this hotel. Elegant but relaxed vintage feel. Great service. And the location cannot be beat -- 2 blocks from Michigan Ave. and Millenium Park. It has all my requisites: Subway stops around the corner. Starbucks and Caribou Coffee close by. Theaters and great restaurants within walking distance. Drug store accross the street for all the toiletries I inevitibly forget, bottled water, etc. Cabs available at all hours.

Rooms sizes do vary. If you find yourself with an unacceptably small room, *ask* for a larger one. My DD and I stayed in a room on the 12th floor with 2 bathrooms and 2 large closets -- heaven when 2 females are sharing a room!

Chicago is a great city for a get together with friends! I went last April and can't wait to go again.

try tripadvisor.com to get many reviews of your hotel.

We did well buying multi-day transit passes, using them from the airport to the city and then within. Made it really easy to venture to many places and not worry about cost.

We got tickets everyday at the half-price ticket place for shows from Second City to musicals and other plays. It's right across from the Cultural Center.

We booked with the Chicago Greeter and had a private tour with a resident that was great fun. There is a minimal donation. We asked our guide to choose a favorite restaurant in the area we were touring, then we treated him to lunch. So nice having a local share his/her city.

The Art Institute is a must. We enjoyed lunch in their more upscale dining room, still very reasonable considering the venue and food.

You're sure to have a great time!

Skip Navy Pier. There's nothing there for adults (IMHO, there's nothing there for kids either, but certainly not for adults). And I LOVE Chicago.

The architectural boat tours are done by two different companies, that I am aware of: the Architectural Institute & the Chicago Historical Society. We went with the latter. Fantastic!

Then if you must go to Navy Pier, it is two blocks away. We saw the stained glass window exhibit & then grabbed a couple of hot dogs for lunch. Then moved on.

As an earlier poster said, the Blue Line from O'Hare is 1 block from the Palmer House and the Red Line runs along the west side of the building on State Street. If you'll be flying into Midway, the Orange Line train runs along the east side of the building on Wabash, so it would be easy to reach from either airport.

There are at least three architecutral tours. I'd recommend the boat tour done by the Chicago Architecture Foundation. Their guides undergo rigorous training. The tours leave from the dock at the SE corner of Michigan Avenue and the river. You can check their site at www.architecture.org.

Thanks everyone for the info. We will only be in town for 3 days so skipping Navy Pier sounds like a good idea. We didn't realize it when we booked our flight but I guess the Blues Festival is the same weekend, any opinions on whether we should spend any time at it? I guess it kind of depends on how much we like The Blues! Thanks again for all the great information.

azmomof2, you should check with the Palmer House about the status of their renovation. If it is not entirely completed, I'd find out when they anticipate it to be finished.

If you refer to their website, you'll see that the pool is currently closed for renovations. And several of the TripAdvisor reviews (some as recent as the end of January 2008) indicate that renovations are still currently ongoing, although it appears from other reports that it was to have been completed.

I understand that only a percentage of the rooms were to be updated during the renovation. If you got a special deal on the room price (especially in June), I'd certainly be asking if it was one that had been redone.